And a twisty one it is...ending the first episode on a cliff-hanger! Ha. But frankly, I'm having trouble with the fact that the show put all those people in a tank filled with sharks and a sting-ray. Is is possible to sedate sharks? None of them made any menacing moves that we were shown.

Yes, sharks are sedated all the time, for tracking and medical purposes as well as for use in movies and TV. The sharks on TAR were probably enjoying a nice Valium buzz.

The cowboys aren't doing so well this time. Their first flight turned into the second flight, they were the only ones who missed the ferry, and they still hadn't been able to figure out the flags code when the episode stopped (not ended, stopped).

Francesca is gone from Survivor, as expected. That's too bad, especially since it was the kind of "duel" she could have won. But at last the show has some people who are smart enough to get rid of Russell. He's not completely gone, no, but is it at all possible he can beat out EVERY other player sent to the island?